NEWS 05
FRIDAY, JULY 24, 2015 MILDURAWEEKLY.COM.AU
By VINNIE RODI
NEW South Wales Depart-
ment of Primary Industries
Water this week authorised
a release of water from Lake
Wetherell at Menindee Lakes,
providing relief for landhold-
ers for domestic and stock use
near Pooncarie.
Commencing yesterday,
the release will provide a
much needed replenishment
flow into the Lower Darling
system between Weir 32 and
Pooncarie, temporarily re-
storing some access for land-
holders.
DPI Water director Sur-
face Water Management, Paul
Simpson, said domestic and
stock water had reduced since
flows into the Lower Darling
ceased at the end of April,
saying DPI Water had been
working closely with the lo-
cal community on the
timing and principles
of replenishments.
“This replenish-
ment is the result of
the cooler conditions
and storms that have
seen inflows coming
into Lake Wetherell,
which has persisted
longer than expect-
ed,” he said.
“It will not com-
promise the water
security for Broken
Hill, but will improve
water for domestic needs for
landholders on properties be-
low Weir 32 who are out of
water in a number of cases.
“Flows will commence at
a low 200 megalitres per day,
and continue for 10 days, be-
fore being reduced.”
DPI Water will monitor
conditions closely, with flows
to be adjusted as required. A
second replenishment flow is
likely to occur later this year.
This week’s announce-
ment is expected to ease
some of the strain being felt
by more than 70 landholders
reliant on the Lower Darling
system, while also offering
environmental benefits.
A NSW DPI Water spokes-
person said the group had
performed an audit of Lower
Darling landholders affected
by the water crisis prior to an-
nouncing this week’s replen-
ishment flow, which sought
information about their in-
tentions to construct bores on
their properties.
The audit revealed that
some landholders were al-
ready facing ‘desperate’ cir-
cumstances, with the spokes-
person saying that potable
water carting for domestic use
had already commenced in
some townships affected by
the reduced flows.
The NSW Government is
also expected to make an an-
nouncement regarding cart-
ing water to Pooncarie over
the coming days, with the
announcement expected to
focus on ‘topping up’ house-
hold tanks.
The NSW DPI Water
spokesperson also confirmed
that talks were continuing
with Wentworth Shire Coun-
cil in regards to constructing a
bore for the Pooncarie town-
ship, with Councillors last
week voting to construct the
bore with or without the help
of the NSW Government.
Kinross Station owner,
Rosie Reid, said Pooncarie
landholders had been in-
formed in June that “one
more release” remained for
the Lower Darling.
“The theory behind au-
thorising this replenishment
flow is due to the recent rain
we’ve had,” she said. “The riv-
erbed has some moisture in
it, and the theory is that water
will travel better rather than
being absorbed.”
Mrs Reid said that while
she welcomed the release, she
feared the Pooncarie town-
ship would not reap the full
benefits due to the town’s
“poorly constructed” weir.
“The weir is not the right
height, and because of that
there is no holding capacity,”
she said.
“While this flow will top
up the river and refresh the
water already in the weir, we
run the risk that a lot of the
water will be lost to South
Australia because the Poon-
carie Weir is not equipped to
hold it.
“I find it staggering that
the weir has not been raised
–
even temporarily.”
Mrs Reid said the replen-
ishment flow would at the
very least buy landowners
some time.
“My husband Brian made
the point that at the very least
it will put the boundary back,
and give people time to fin-
ish building fences to secure
stock,” she said.
Mrs Reid said landhold-
ers were yet to learn whether
they would qualify for the
New South Wales Govern-
ment’s emergency water in-
frastructure grants, with resi-
dents meeting with Member
for Murray Adrian Piccoli two
weeks ago to discuss the issue.
The Reids are one of many
affected farming fam-
ilies that have already
began constructing
bores and fences on
their properties – at
their own expense –
to combat the water
shortage and protect
valuable stock.
“I spoke to Mr
Piccoli’s office re-
cently and they said
the ball had been set
in motion,” she said.
“It’s something I plan
to follow up again in
the next couple of days, and
we need a bit of help to cover
these costs.”
Mrs Reid said the manage-
ment of the Menindee Lakes
system needed to be closely
looked at, with this latest cri-
sis marking the third time the
Lower Darling has run dry in
the past decade.
“The big issue is still the
management of water,” she
said. “The authorities contin-
ue to increase the demand on
the river without increasing
the supply.
“The scenario we’re fac-
ing is that this resource is
being stretched too thin. His-
tory tells us that from 1943
to 2002 the Menindee Lakes
never ran dry, and I’m sure we
would have endured droughts
in that time.
“All roads point to water
management that is not serv-
ing the people, and there is
a real risk that this manage-
ment could ruin communi-
ties.”
Landholders welcome replenishment flows, and once again there’s...
Water in the Darling
WENTWORTH Shire Council is continu-
ing to investigate future development of its
Wentworth Aerodrome precinct following
an on-going review of the site’s Master Plan
and Feasibility Study.
Commissioned in 2009, the aim of the
Master Plan was to enable Council staff to
complete a business plan and funding sub-
missions for any works identified, while
also enabling proper planning of “strategic
upgrades to the site to meet the growing de-
mands of the Shire.”
Following a Council workshop on May
22, a consultant was engaged to review
existing documentation and information
relating to the aerodrome’s proposed de-
velopment, with Brett Rielley from Aurecon
Australia presenting findings to Councillors
at last week’s monthly meeting.
Mr Rielley said that any future decision
regarding the Wentworth Aerodrome need-
ed to be made with a clear view of what type
of aircraft Council wanted to see utilising
the site now, and well into the future.
At present, the aerodrome’s primary run-
way is 1108 metres long and 18 metres wide,
and is sufficient enough to accommodate
small, light aircraft – or those classified as
1B-type aircraft.
Current facilities available at the site in-
clude a limited amount of hangar space for
short-stay visitors to the region, a recently
upgraded self-serve credit card operated av-
gas facility and residential blocks currently
available for purchase.
The Shire’s 2015/16 budget has
$590,000 set aside for drainage works – to
be completed in the 2015/16 financial year
–
with plans also in place to upgrade the
aerodrome’s runway in 2016/17.
Those plans will see the Wentworth
Aerodrome upgraded to a Code 2B facility,
with an option to widen the runway to 23
metres. That width would allow the aero-
drome to accommodate larger – or 2C-type
–
aircraft similar to those currently used by
Qantas and Sharp airlines, with provisions
needing to be made to ensure the runway
can handle the appropriate weight of those
aircraft.
A third option – which would see the
aerodrome upgraded to a point where it
could accommodate even larger commercial
aircraft – was also discussed, and quickly
dismissed by Councillors.
Council’s current master plan includes
the widening of the runway to 23 metres,
with Mr Rielley encouraging Councillors to
consider future growth at the site in their
decision-making process.
Wentworth Mayor Don McKinnon said
Council had to look to the future when it
came to the Wentworth Aerodrome.
“We are, however, confined to cost,” he
said. “We’ll keep looking at all of the op-
tions, with the aim to apply for grants as
they come up.”
Councillors have asked Mr Rielley to
produce figures that look at specific costs as-
sociated with each option discussed at last
week’s meeting, with those figures expected
to be presented Council’s August meeting.
Aerodrome future focus
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